Not What I Designed: The Story of an Extreme Heart Makeover

When the final box was loaded into the U-Haul truck, Becky turned and took one last look at the Seattle home that was supposed to be hers forever. A charming welcome plaque hung on the front door. Beyond that, the granite-topped island where her grandchildren loved to gather. Time to face the hard realities: Foreclosure. Bankruptcy. And possibly, homelessness.

This sixty-year-old interior designer, a pastor’s wife, felt embarrassed.

“This is not a situation I ever pictured we would be in as we approached retirement. I am embarrassed. Perplexed. Angry—no, angry is not strong enough. Livid is more like it. Livid at God.” –Becky Dietrich, author

Becky, a lifelong Christian, responded to the dissolution of her financial security—needs unmet, prayers unanswered—by turning her back on God. But hers is the inspirational story of how God, the master designer, performed an extreme makeover, renovating the blackness of her heart, revealing the idols that had displaced Him, building something new and eternally beautiful.

In an era of increasing economic instability, Becky’s story is timely. She addresses the faith-defining question we all eventually face: When the world we’ve designed for ourselves collapses and He’s all we have left, is God enough?